A user centered design strategy for IG Metall Jugend’s website
Client: IGM Metall Jugend (one of Germany’s oldest and largest union)
Project Partners: Junipakt, Netzwerk für Text, Gestaltung,Public Relations & Training.
We did:
- Content inventory & analysis
- Target group research
- Online survey and participant recruitment
- Persona development based on different research strategies
- Information Architecture
- Target group research
- Online survey and participant recruitment
- Persona development based on different research strategies
- Information Architecture
About the project:
IG Metall Jugend (the youth ressort of the union) is currently establishing a complete new concept in terms of appearance and tone of voice. Junipakt asked us if we would like to join the project team and create the concept base for the new web site.
The organization could clearly describe their goals for the new site. We complemented this information with a content inventory and an in-depth analysis of the current state as well as research on best practice cases, which became the basis of the new strategy we created.
The organization had also named four main target groups. Our idea was to create personas based on the four groups. But first we had to find out if we could cluster some of the target groups or if they were really so diverse that each target group had to be represented by one persona. We began our research by reading interview studies the client had provided. We also found inspiration on Facebook, specifically in public profiles that had liked the organization’s pages. Our main research tool however, was an anonymous online survey with 16 questions that we shared with a mailing list of the organization but also with our followers and friends in various social media channels. The survey ran for two weeks, had great participation and gave us results we could work with. The personas were starting to come to life.
The cherry on top of our strategy was the new information architecture in which we combined everything we had learned. We knew the organization’s goals, had viewed a ton of content and had created four primary personas. The information architecture is a user-centered solution, which is not only based on the persona’s needs and questions but also keeps their individual motivation in mind. During research we also found some questions that popped up in nearly every answered survey. We took these questions and developed ideas on how to answer them on the new site.
We presented our findings in a full day workshop with the client, who might have given us the best compliment we have ever received in Geekettez history by telling us that they felt better understood than ever before
1/2 A lot of work goes into creating a persona. The process can be quite different depending on the material and data you start with. We felt we did not have enough data, which is why we made our own by creating an online survey and recruiting participants.
2/2 The new information architecture addresses the defined personas and their individual questions, will quickly help them find the information they are looking for and will not require them to wade through non-relevant content. During research we also came up with ideas for new features that can help IGM Jugend achieve their defined goals.
Most challenging aspect
How much do you know about the work unions do? We thought we knew most of it before diving into the details. Grasping the wide area of union activity and competence was definitely a challenge. Understanding the diverse target group and coming up with a solution, which could address their needs and answer persona specific questions was also an aspect that had us scratching our heads.
Most fun
IG Metall Jugend are highly motivated to understand their members and are willing to put the required time into research, which is needed to get there. They fully understand the concept of user-centered design, which is a pleasure to see and work with.
